Jim Reilly wrote:According to multiple reports today, Nintendo will reveal a new console at E3 this coming June.

Game Informer first reported the details, saying the console is capable of running games at "HD resolutions." Our sources have said the the console is significantly more powerful than the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and that Nintendo's intent is to recapture the hardcore market. Another source said it is capable of 1080p resolutions.

Nintendo is reportedly showing the console to publishers to garner interest for a late 2012 launch.

Additional sources tell IGN that Nintendo will release a pre-announcement this month with a full reveal expected at E3 and that the console will be backwards compatible with current Wii software.

A report from CVG states the new Nintendo console will use an all-new controller - not an updated Wii controller - with sources saying it will have a built-in screen. Additional sources informed IGN the screen has touch capability.

Jim Reilly and Rich George wrote:New details have surfaced from yesterday's reports that Nintendo is set to unveil its newest console, codenamed "Project Cafe."

According to our sources, the new Nintendo controller will feature dual analog sticks in addition to standard d-pad and trigger buttons. It'll mirror a Gamecube controller in general function but not in specific form.

French website 01.net has published additional details (via Develop), that say the touch capable screen on the controller is 6 inches in size, but we were unable to confirm the accuracy of the report. Additional details about the console's hardware specs could also not be confirmed.

Players will actually be able to stream game content to the controller screen from the console. It's unclear at this time what type of content it will be, whether it's full games you can take with you on the go, mini-games or applications.

At E3 in June, our sources also said Nintendo will show first and third party titles at the event, but it's unsure if they'll be playable or only in video form.

Update: Sources now confirm to IGN the new Nintendo controller allows players to stream entire games to the device from the console, saying it's like a miniature television. The screen size on the controller is also confirmed to be six inches in size.

Scott Lowe wrote:The Internet was set ablaze this week when the first wave of reports regarding Nintendo's next-generation console, the Wii 2, hit the web. First reported by Game Informer, and later confirmed by IGN's own sources, the console, which has been code named Project Cafe, will match or surpass the processing power of the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 and support a new controller that combines a traditional dual-analog design with an integrated touchscreen display.

Though many were quick to liken the concept to the Dreamcast, we've since learned that the intended purpose for the display may be far more complex, working simultaneously with the console to bring interactive elements and even stream full games to the controller.

Naturally, such a bold concept raises many questions and we'll likely have to wait until E3 for answers, but in the meantime we can provide some educated guesses based on the information we've obtained, and some old fashioned speculation.

Again, this is purely based on information provided by IGN's sources, our understanding of console hardware manufacturing, and some speculation; Nintendo has not confirmed or commented upon any of the reports thus far.

The Display

When reports first broke that the controller would feature an integrated display but maintain physical analog sticks, action buttons, and shoulder buttons, the first, albeit somewhat fantastical thought that came to mind was a design where the entire faceplate was an LCD display, however, we've since been told that the display will instead be a 6-inch touchscreen, likely positioned at the center of the shell.

The display will also reportedly support touch control, though we've not been told whether or not the display will support multitouch. The display will also allegedly feature HD resolution, allowing for seamless transmission between the console and the controller. Though certainly a possibility, the costs associated with integrating a HD display into the design suggest that the true resolution may be lower.

Even with the lowest quality components, a controller with an integrated 720p HD or greater display would require an MSRP of $80 or more. Aside from the cost of the display itself, Nintendo would have to use a built-in processor to control the display, not to mention additional chipsets for wireless connectivity. According to sources with knowledge of peripheral production, a controller of that complexity could easily cost $25 in factory costs alone, whereas a wireless Wiimote is estimated to cost Nintendo only $6 per unit. On the other hand, if Nintendo really wanted to push the concept, they could forfeit a portion of the markup to keep retail costs down.

As previously mentioned, the other lingering question is whether or not the device will support single or multitouch haptic control, which could be used for minigames, creating contextual controls for games being played on the console, or games played exclusively though the controller itself. Again, adding multitouch support would drive up costs but potentially provide a more compelling gameplay experience.

Working Wirelessly With the System

If the controller is expected to support games and video streamed from the console, there are a number of plausible ways the device could connect with system. Currently, Nintendo utilizes Bluetooth and infrared technology for wireless communication with the Wii, which transmit standard button input, as well as motion sensing and on-screen pointer positioning data to the console. Depending on the capabilities and function of the new controller, however, 2.4GHz wireless technology may be the more realistic solution, as it allows for wireless video transmission.

Though the next-generation Bluetooth standard, version 3.0, allows for wireless video transmission, it has not been widely implemented by hardware manufacturers and as a result comes at a high cost. Alternatively, combining Bluetooth and a proprietary 2.4GHz system would be more cost effective and allow Nintendo to separate standard input controls and audio and video transmissions to-and-from the system.

A dual 2.4GHz and Bluetooth system would also support the claims that the controller could allow users to play games without the use of a TV, making it a handheld tethered to the range of the 2.4GHz transmitter, of sorts. If video and audio are simply transmitted to the controller itself, it could effectively end battles for living room TV usage or splitscreen multiplayer.

The Battery

Of course, these picturesque dreams of elaborate controller hijinks would have a detrimental effect on battery life, and Nintendo would have to pack a sizable battery solution inside. On the one hand, they could maintain a cost-effective removable battery solution, but a built-in rechargable lithium ion battery might be more convenient. The internal battery could potentially charge during use via a USB connection to the console, much like the PS3, and Nintendo could make life even easier by implementing inductive charging capabilities. They could make USB the default charging solution but offer an optional inductive charging surface of their own, as well as let third-party manufacturers provide a variety of alternatives.

Obviously this is pure speculation, but it would be awesome all the same.

According to sources with knowledge of the project, Nintendo's next console could have a retail price of anywhere between $350 and $400 based on manufacturing costs, and will ship from Taiwanese manufacturer, Foxconn, this October, putting the earliest possible retail release anywhere between mid-October and early November.

However, Nintendo could also opt to build up a sizable supply of the system and allocate more time for software and games development by launching in early 2012. Similarly, Nintendo could attempt to lower the retail price of the system with lower profit margins to make the price more alluring.

Since the manufacturing is taking place in Taiwan, the earthquakes and tsunami that hit Japan last month will not impact the console hardware as previously expected.

Additionally, IGN has learned that the system will be based on a revamped version of AMD's R700 GPU architecture, not AMD's Fusion technology as previously believed, which will, as previously reported, out perform the PlayStation 3's NVIDIA 7800GTX-based processor. Like the Xbox 360, the system's CPU will be a custom-built triple-core IBM PowerPC chipset, but the clocking speeds will be faster. The system will support 1080p output with the potential for stereoscopic 3D as well, though it has not been determined whether that will be a staple feature.

In terms of the design of the console itself, the overall size will be comparable to that of the original Xbox 360 and the system is likely to resemble a modernized version of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES).

As reported last week, it will indeed utilize controllers with integrated touchscreens and be capable of streaming games to each controller, though given the power of the system, could also feasibly provide a virtualized console for each individual unit.

Finally, Nintendo is considering naming the console Stream, though it is potentially one of several names currently being vetted by the company.

We contacted Nintendo representatives, but they declined to comment on "rumors or speculation."

For more on Project Cafe, stay tuned to IGN.com.

Last edited by TheButcher on Wed Jun 08, 2011 6:05 am, edited 1 time in total.

Miyamoto has basically said the rumours are a mix of truth, falses and maybes - yes some of it will be in their next console, some of it won't be, some of it will never see the light of day.

...Ninty, like quite a few other companies probably, make tons of crazy gizmos that never get released to the general public (I'm guessing they learned with the Virtual Boy that not everything they think of should be made)

...and the E3 unveiling may or may not be their next gen console...or just some updated Wii.

The articles are saying it'll be backwards compatible with the wii & the wii is backwards compatible with the gamecube (well, it is a gamecube), so i guess you'll be able to play every gen of Nintendo on it.

They better find a way to carry over the Wii ware & virtual console files.

King Of Nowhere wrote:The articles are saying it'll be backwards compatible with the wii & the wii is backwards compatible with the gamecube (well, it is a gamecube), so i guess you'll be able to play every gen of Nintendo on it.

They better find a way to carry over the Wii ware & virtual console files.

Seems like they could have an upgrade on the Wii that makes us create usernames and passwords for the Wii store. Shouldn't be too hard...

When you get VC games they are "locked" to the serial number of your machine, however (not that I have tried this feature yet) you should be able to put them on an SD card for storage/future transfer. Currently if something happens to your Wii and you get it replaced, Nintendo can change permissions or something so that you can play your SD-card-saved VC games on the new system... anyhow there is nothing technically keeping Nintendo from letting people transfer their Wii content to a new platform, unless they wanna be dicks about it.

Pacino86845 wrote:When you get VC games they are "locked" to the serial number of your machine, however (not that I have tried this feature yet) you should be able to put them on an SD card for storage/future transfer. Currently if something happens to your Wii and you get it replaced, Nintendo can change permissions or something so that you can play your SD-card-saved VC games on the new system... anyhow there is nothing technically keeping Nintendo from letting people transfer their Wii content to a new platform, unless they wanna be dicks about it.

They could perhaps let you enter your Wii ID number on the new console and transfer over purchases.

Pacino86845 wrote:When you get VC games they are "locked" to the serial number of your machine, however (not that I have tried this feature yet) you should be able to put them on an SD card for storage/future transfer. Currently if something happens to your Wii and you get it replaced, Nintendo can change permissions or something so that you can play your SD-card-saved VC games on the new system... anyhow there is nothing technically keeping Nintendo from letting people transfer their Wii content to a new platform, unless they wanna be dicks about it.

They could perhaps let you enter your Wii ID number on the new console and transfer over purchases.

No too simple and crazy. I am thinking about some type of Rube Goldberg device that will somehow move memory from one console to the other...

TOKYO – Nintendo on Monday posted a full fiscal-year profit that was down 66 percent and also announced the successor to its hit Wii console, sales of which have been slowing worldwide.

Hit by the decline in Wii sales, a strong yen and the disruption to the launch of its 3DS portable console in Japan caused by the March 11 earthquake, Nintendo announced a profit of 77.62 billion yen ($945 million) for the year to March 31. Revenue fell nearly 30 percent to 1.014 trillion yen, following a 22 percent drop last year.

This is the second straight year of falling revenue and profit for the Kyoto-based firm, which posted net income of 228.64 billion yen for the year to March 2010, itself a drop of 18 percent. Nevertheless, Nintendo did manage to stay in the black throughout the global slowdown.

In a three-sentence statement on its website, media-shy Nintendo announced it "has decided to launch in 2012 a system to succeed Wii" and that it "will show a playable model of the new system and announce more specifications at the E3 Expo" in Los Angeles June 7-9.

The 3DS, the glasses-free 3D portable console that was launched at the end of February in Japan, and at the end of March elsewhere, missed Nintendo’s global sales target of 4 million units, racking up 3.61 million by the end of March.

Although the earthquake in Japan has affected nearly every industry, it doesn’t explain all of the 3DS’ lackluster sales: the new console has been outsold by Sony’s seven-year-old PSP for the last few weeks in Japan. A slim line-up of games for the 3DS launch is being blamed for low consumer interest.

Nintendo is forecasting a profit of 110 billion yen for the year to March 2012, although the company is famously conservative in its financial predictions.

The Guardian wrote:Nintendo's new Wii U console – here's what you see on the screen ...When looking at the Nintendo Wii U, it's important to remember that when the Wii launched in 2006, some people laughed at the console's intention to "disrupt" gaming.

It didn't look like a disruptive piece of kit – but it was. The proof lies in the fact that Microsoft and Sony subsequently felt obliged to create the Kinect and Move, not to mention the entire generation of people it introduced to video games. But surely it couldn't pull of the same trick again with Wii U?

Oh yes it can. Although there was trepidation mixed in with the excitement when we pitched up at Nintendo's still half-built booth at E3, on the day before the press conference at which it would launch Wii U, for an ultra-exclusive sneak preview of the new console.

Which was conducted in a gloriously cloak-and-dagger manner – a wristband had to be obtained, security insisted we hide our press badge, we were given a lengthy list of questions we couldn't ask, photography and audio-recording devices were strictly banned, and we had to wait outside a demo room sealed by a blast-door that would tax a professional safe cracker.

Upon entering the inner sanctum, Wii U itself, although apparently hooked up to a big screen, initially remained concealed – indeed, the console remained a shadowy presence throughout, partly hidden in a cupboard. What we could see of it resembled a slightly more rounded Wii, but in truth, it looked like a prototype not yet given the benefit of an industrial designer.

We were told that none of the games we would be playing were actual games, but rather tech-demos. And our first glimpse of anything running on the console was emphatically that: a lengthy fly-through in an immaculately constructed virtual Japanese garden, from the viewpoint of various birds, designed to show off Wii U's graphics-processing power.

Which was impressive if not jaw-dropping – on a par with the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, running in full HD, with depth of focus and convincingly modelled water and weather effects. We had established that Wii U will be able to run the sort of third-party titles that currently only make it onto the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but before long, we began to yearn for some signs of Nintendo's fabled disruptive gameplay.

What the hell is that?

They weren't long in coming. With a theatrical flourish, the new controller was produced. On clapping eyes on it, our initial reaction ran thus. What? The hell? Is that?

... and here's the funky new Wii U controllerThe controller is one of the strangest bits of kit you will ever see. It basically resembles an unholy mating of a tablet PC and a gamepad. It's huge – you need both hands to grip it – and dominated by a massive, 6.2in touchscreen.

It has two analogue sticks, all the buttons you would expect to find on a gamepad (including two triggers on the back plus two bumpers, which weren't used during the demo), a camera pointing at you and a tiny speaker. It motion-senses like a Wiimote and has a gyro-sensor like the 3DS. The whole shebang basically has most of the elements found in the PlayStation Vita (bar the processor and graphics chips), and is much bigger than Sony's new handheld.

It's clearly not something you can wave around with abandon like the Wiimote, so we initially found it more than a little confusing. Luckily, the chance to experience some proper gameplay was at hand, and the point of the new controller became clearer.

Nintendo had been banging on about how that bizarre piece of design was all about providing new gameplay experiences, and from the off, there was no disputing that it delivers on that count.

Mii Chase

The first tech-demo we played – although it looked suspiciously like a mini-game that you might find in a Wii U version of Wii Play – was called Mii Chase. On entering the room, we had noticed a collection of Wimotes, which seemed odd, but Mii Chase rammed home the message that part of the point of the new controller is about interplay with the familiar remote control.

Mii Chase was an ultra-simple game for up to five people. I would navigate Mario, using the new controller, around a maze-like circular level, while four people equipped with Wiimotes would, after I had been given a head-start, try to chase me down within a certain time. The twist was that they had to share a split-screen on the TV, whereas my screen on the new controller showed a third-person view of my character, plus a top-down map with the whereabouts of my pursuers.

In gameplay terms, this was almost laughably simple, yet the whole experience felt fresh and innovative, as well as fun. The need for the pursuers to co-operate generated a raucous atmosphere, yet the private information communicated by the new controller's screen meant I could stay one step ahead of them.

If you think about it, there are an awful lot of Wiis out there, and if people are going to upgrade to Wii U, they'll be thankful that those Wiimotes, at least, won't become redundant. So to create gameplay from the interplay between the two types of controller could just be a stroke of genius.

Battle Mii

Next up was Battle Mii, in a similar vein to Mii Chase, but somewhat more sophisticated. Battle Mii is a first/third-person shooter, with two people (playing as their Miis) on the ground, armed with a gun and three lives each.

The person with the new controller pilots a hover-ship (equipped with six lives), using the analogue sticks as if piloting a helicopter in a game, while shooting with one trigger and using the other to zoom. Tilting the controller changed your camera view, so you could use that to aim.

Again, the dynamic was Wiimotes versus new controller. There was a Metroid theme to proceedings – the ground-based characters could roll into a ball like Samus – and health and armour power-ups. The gameplay experience was very different according to whether you were on the ground or in the air and, again, Battle Mii felt refreshingly unlike anything we had played before.

Shield Pose

Shield Pose showed that Wii U isn't just about the tension between the new controller and Wiimote-wielding adversaries. It used the new controller on its own, and required no pressing of buttons whatsoever.

The premise was endearingly madcap: a bunch of pirates on three ships – one central, one to the left and one to the right – plus the moon above were firing arrows at you, and you had to use the new controller as a shield. There was a rhythm element, too: you had to raise the new controller from the horizontal at just the right time (on a musical cue), then lower it, also with the rhythm, to shake the arrows off.

The head pirate called which direction the arrows would come from, and after a while you would have to raise the new controller and point it in various directions before shaking off your arrows. Simple, again, but completely original – and there was an endearingly humorous element to the game.

More tech-demos

Our hands-on finished with two more tech-demos. The first, Panorama View, had nothing obvious to do with anything recognisable as a game, but was startling and impressive. It was simply video footage taken from a car driving down a Kyoto city street. Or rather, stitched-together video from several cameras, as you could use the new controller's gyro-sensor to move your viewpoint around, as if you were actually in the moving car – looking up, down behind and around.

The last demo was blandly entitled HD Experience, but it will excite Nintendo fanboys. It was essentially a cut-scene depicting what a Zelda game would look like on Wii U set in a huge, gothic interior, with Link taking on a giant spider-boss.

Nintendo had mapped various functions onto the new controller's touchscreen, such as toggling the lighting between day and night, and scrolling through different camera angles. There was also a map, and you could press a button to switch images between the new controller's screen and the TV screen.

It demonstrated that the new controller's touch-screen can operate much like the touch-screen on a 3DS, letting you access inventory and so on.

So will Wii U eclipse the Wii?

Initial impressions would leave us answering that question with a resounding "Yes". In typical Nintendo fashion, Wii U is one of those objects that you have to get your hands on before you get what it is trying to achieve.The new controller is such an odd, unlikely-looking thing that it will undoubtedly generate a wave of early cynicism. But the joyously unusual nature of the gameplay experiences that even a couple of hastily assembled tech-demos can engender bodes more than well.

And its sensible amount of under-the-bonnet grunt (an area in which the underpowered Wii suffered from its inception) gives it much more hardcore appeal than its predecessor.

After the demo was over Nintendo, bless it, treated us to a final element of cloak-and-daggerishness. We were told more facts about Wii U, which had to be read out and transcribed only onto paper.

So here they are: the console itself will run in full HD, via HDMI, but the touchscreen isn't HD. The console has internal Flash memory which can be augmented with "SD Card or USB solutions". It will play optical disks and downloadable content, and will be backwards-compatible with Wii software. And it will launch some time between 1 April and 31 December 2012.

It will be the oddest console ever, and possibly the best, too. Or it may turn out to be a complete cul-de-sac. But one thing is for sure: it won't just be another generic games console.

Shouldn't be too "disruptive" for sony... A firmware update could probablly make the NGP/PSVita the same as the U controller/tablet/frankensteiner.

Now microsoft on the other hand would either need to do the same for wm7 devices via some sort of app or develop an entirely new imput device, which considering the direction they're going with heavy kinect focus, this is doubtful and MS may just let this little battle play out from the sidelines.

Personally? WiiU(HD) is about 3 years too late. I don't blame nintendo for taking as much money from the public as they could, but they milked it too long and now this next gen box is going to be old hat again with the next gen from sony and microsoft hits, probablly 2013.

Too bad really, I honestly would have happily bought this 2-3 years ago, now I'll use that money for the PSVita.

...does it not seem a bit overly complicated with that controller. I can see the concept that they're aiming for, and I'm sure it'll be quite cool to use, but it seems to be quite wide in its focus - it's sorta seems like three different console concepts.

This is a Wii HD upgrade (much like how Microsoft progressed from Xbox to Xbox360) but with this fancy controller tacked on. There was nothing wrong with the Wiimote, it was part of Wii's success, so why the need for this? It somewhat stinks of Ninty being reactionary to Sony's Wii-inspired efforts.

The Wii was about picking up the Wiimote....and off you go, you're playing the game. I wonder how many "non-gamers" will pick this up in the same way.

You can use the Wiimote with the Wii U (like the Wii U Golf demo), so i imagine they'll be part of the package as well.

King Psyz wrote:Shouldn't be too "disruptive" for sony... A firmware update could probablly make the NGP/PSVita the same as the U controller/tablet/frankensteiner.

Now microsoft on the other hand would either need to do the same for wm7 devices via some sort of app or develop an entirely new imput device, which considering the direction they're going with heavy kinect focus, this is doubtful and MS may just let this little battle play out from the sidelines.

Microsoft reps were overheard by someone from G4, saying "bah, we're gonna do this with all handheld devices".Windows Media Center already steams movies & music from PC to other PCs, xbox 360s or windows 7 based phones, so it wouldn't be a massive jump.

Sony are already supporting some Android phones, so i guess they are on par with MS in the "where now?" quest.

To be honest, i'd prefer if they all just stuck to making new games.I haven't bought Kinect to use with the 360, nor a Win7 phoneI can't see myself buying a Move, Vita & new android phone to use with the ps3I won't buy a Wii U + controller + 3DS either

King Of Nowhere wrote:You can use the Wiimote with the Wii U (like the Wii U Golf demo), so i imagine they'll be part of the package as well.

King Psyz wrote:Shouldn't be too "disruptive" for sony... A firmware update could probablly make the NGP/PSVita the same as the U controller/tablet/frankensteiner.

Now microsoft on the other hand would either need to do the same for wm7 devices via some sort of app or develop an entirely new imput device, which considering the direction they're going with heavy kinect focus, this is doubtful and MS may just let this little battle play out from the sidelines.

Microsoft reps were overheard by someone from G4, saying "bah, we're gonna do this with all handheld devices".Windows Media Center already steams movies & music from PC to other PCs, xbox 360s or windows 7 based phones, so it wouldn't be a massive jump.

Sony are already supporting some Android phones, so i guess they are on par with MS in the "where now?" quest.

To be honest, i'd prefer if they all just stuck to making new games.I haven't bought Kinect to use with the 360, nor a Win7 phoneI can't see myself buying a Move, Vita & new android phone to use with the ps3I won't buy a Wii U + controller + 3DS either

I'm on the other end, I have the move, it's okay. I have kinect, I do enjoy it and my son can play (and get excercise!) And I will likely buy PSVita.

Sony mentioned previously it would be able to do cross platform gaming, and they originally mentioned having some kind of functionality between the original PSP and the PS3 like what Wii U just announced. I would imagine the lack of decent analog controls hindered that... So who knows what PSV could bring next gen.

I guess one of the good things about Wii U will be the lack of on-screen HUD, so now they can enjoy:QuakeDoomRageWolfensteinDukeHalf LifePortalLeft 4 DeadFearFar CryAliensHa- erm, Killz- oh, hold on, Metroid Prime? Golden-fucking-eye?BioshockBattlefieldBrothers In ArmsCODMirror's fucking Edge!

Reports are saying that the next Xbox will begin production late in the year and be released in fall 2013.

Production of Microsoft’s Xbox 720 is expected to begin by late in 2012 and will have a GPU coming from AMD’S 6000 series. IGN reports that the Xbox 720 is expected to have six times the graphic capability of the Xbox 360 and have 20 percent more power than Nintendo’s upcoming Wii U.

According to sources, the new Xbox will be introducing a new version of Kinect, its hands-free sensor system. Kinect 2 would have an on-board processor, which would more effectively detect a users' motion. Also, the Xbox 720 is expected to have a smaller controller.

Kotaku.com reports that Microsoft plans to include an anti-used game system in their Xbox 720, but it was not certain exactly how they had planned to do so. One method would be to link a game with a user’s Xbox Live account, but that can be beaten by keeping a system offline. Used games are a solid source of revenue to retailers like GameStop.